This invention relates to electrical connection and connectors.
The invention is more particularly concerned with connectors for making electrical connection to a screening sleeve of an electrical cable.
Where electrical connection is made to the screening sleeve of an electrical cable, it preferably has a low resistance and the connection is preferably of a kind that can be easily made and removed for servicing. If the screening sleeve is braided, it is preferable that the connection can be made without the need to separate the braid from the signal conductor.
In GB 2336952 there is described a connector for making connection to a conductive sleeve of a cable where the connector includes a wad of random electrically-conductive filamentary material encapsulated in an elastomeric material and having passages through which the wires extend so that electrical connection between the screening sleeves on the wires and the connector housing is made by the conductive filaments.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an alternative connection to screening sleeves and the like.
According to one aspect of the present invention there is provided an electrical connection including a member formed substantially entirely of a conductive, resilient sheet material the member having a plurality of passages extending through the member between opposite ends, one for each of a plurality of wires, and means for radially inwardly compressing the member about the wires so that the member makes effective electrical connection with the outside of each wire when tightened and such that the member recovers substantially its original shape when the clamp is released.
The sheet material may be a wire mesh or of a conductive woven or knitted material. The sheet member may comprise a combination of metal fibres and non-metal fibres. The member may include two sheets of textile separated from one another by spacer fibres. The member may be of beryllium copper, copper or Monel. The means for compressing the member is preferably a clamp, such as including a strap embracing the member. The connection may include a disc located adjacent the member, the disc having an aperture for each wire. The member may include a sealing material, the sealing material being displaceable by insertion of wires in the member to enable electrical contact between the wires and the member. The sealing material may be a gel or a settable material.
According to another aspect of the present invention there is provided an electrical connection including a member formed substantially entirely of a conductive wire mesh material, the member having a plurality of passages extending through the member between opposite ends, one for each of a plurality of wires, and means for radially inwardly compressing the member about the wires so that the wire mesh makes effective electrical connection with the outside of each wire.
The wire mesh may be of beryllium copper, copper or Monel.
The sheet material may have a plurality of layers joined with one another at locations to form passages between the layers between the locations. Alternatively, the member may include a continuous strip of material folded backwards and forwards. Alternatively, the member may be of ladder shape rolled into a spiral.
An electrical connector according to the present invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings.